Teachers’ perception on the role of early childhood education in promoting moral and intellectual virtues in pupils in Nsukka urban

Urban Farm DB summary

A cross-sectional survey investigated teachers' perceptions of early childhood education's role in promoting moral and intellectual virtues among pupils in Nsukka urban, Enugu State, Nigeria, drawing a sample of 176 early childhood education teachers from 42 randomly selected schools out of a population of 876 teachers across 82 public and private primary schools. Data, collected via questionnaire, were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Respondents identified group projects, daily morning assembly, tending the school garden, role-playing, picnics, excursions, and community service among the activities that promote virtues in pupils, citing truthfulness, humility, respect, and patience as commonly promoted moral virtues and courage, curiosity, attentiveness, and thoroughness as intellectual virtues. No significant relationship was found among teachers' years of experience, school ownership, educational qualification, perceptions of virtue-promoting activities, and the extent to which they promoted them. Challenges cited included inadequate supply of learning materials, poor educational funding, inadequate adult-child ratio, poor time management, and lack of parental involvement.